"We thought the ecological city could be heated by burning pistachio shells because when you plan such environment-friendly systems, you take a look at natural resources you have," she said.

The pistachio-heated new city would encompass 3,200 hectares, and house 200,000 people. It would be located 11 kilometres from the province's capital city, also named Gaziantep.

If the project bears fruit, pistachio shells formerly regarded as waste could become a new form of energy.

Turkey is one of the world's biggest producers of pistachios, along with Iran, the United States and Syria, according to the UN's Food and Agriculture Organisation.

Last year, it exported 6,800 tonnes of the nut, generating approximately US$80 million (B2.6 billion) in income. Gaziantep alone exported 4,000 tonnes last year, Mehmet Kahraman, from the union said. AFP